My Top 10 Ways to Raise a Bookworm

"Children are made readers on the laps of their parents." — Emilie Buchwald

"You may have tangible wealth untold. Caskets of jewels and coffers of gold. Richer than I you can never be — I had a mother who read to me." — Strickland Gillilan

"There is no substitute for books in the life of a child." — May Ellen Chase

“Everyone” knows that reading to children is important…BUT “everyone” is not doing it. The statistics speak for themselves!

*Across the nation just under half of children between birth and five years (47.8%) are read to every day by their parents or other family members. Russ S, Perez V, Garro
N, Klass P, Kuo AA, Gershun M, Halfon N, Zuckerman B.

#1 Start Early

*By the age of 2, children who are read to regularly display greater language comprehension,
larger vocabularies, and higher cognitive skills than their peers. Raikes, H., Pan, B.A., Luze, G.J., Tamis-LeMonda, C.S.,Brooks-Gunn, J., Constantine,

I read to both of my babies in the womb. Some believe this to be pointless, but I wanted my babies to hear the rhythm of literature and get used to hearing my voice outside of everyday conversation. Once they were in my arms, our noses have been in a book on a daily basis. I strongly recommend starting as early as possible to teach children how to hold a book, turn pages, enjoy illustrations, and develop a strong attention span.

#2 Let them see YOU reading!!!!

Our children look up to us and emulate our actions; we have all said, “Actions speak louder than words!” Turn off the screens and let reading be a family activity. “Readers are leaders,” so step up and lead your children into the wonderful world of literature.

#3 Have Books Available

*Creating a steady stream of new, age-appropriate books has been shown to nearly triple interest in reading within months. Harris, Louis. An Assessment of the Impact of First Book’s Northeast Program. January 2003

Start a home library with books that children will cherish forever. Collect classic favorites like: Goodnight Moon, Mother Goose Nursery Rhymes, Five Little Monkeys,  and The Very Hungry Caterpillar. Scour yard sales, consignments shops, bargain stores, and thrift stores. Invest in their favorite books and keep the library growing. Children need to have books that are their own. Find board books and fabric books for little babies that are tough and durable.

 

 

#4 Frequent your library…and not just to check out books!

Sean LOVES going to the library. We go twice a month to check out new books and use a bag that is only used for library books so he learns to keep up with them. He enjoys finding new books on his own and I usually choose a few that I want to share. In addition to checking out books we attend story time and other free programs such as the zoo mobile. Your public library is a great way to encourage reading and your librarian is another valuable resource. Check out the programs your library has to offer and help your child register for their own card.

#5 Read from a variety of genres

*The more types of reading materials there are in the home, the higher students are in reading proficiency, according to the Educational Testing Service.³

Classic literature is by far my favorite, but I make sure we read other types. There are great poetry books for kids, and nonfiction is imperative in helping our kids understand science, social studies, and research. Fairytales are a fun way to introduce drama, and nursery rhymes are rarely taught anymore. 

#6 Incorporate Techy Books

In my opinion nothing holds a candle to a physical book with pages full of new adventures, but we are in the middle of a huge technology explosion that seems to suck our children in, so explore ebooks for tablets, ereaders like Leapfrog, and websites like http://www.storylineonline.net/ where actors read aloud great stories.

 

#7 Bring Stories to Life

After reading books use them to explore art projects, reenact favorite parts with homemade puppets and props, make up silly songs, or create learning games based on characters, plot, or theme.

 

 

#8 Read books about topics they love

#9 Make it apart of your daily routine

We read books all throughout the day most days, but reading is a part of our nightly bedtime routine. Sean picks 1 and I pick 1 to share in our big rocking chair in his room. Although Olivia reads with us, after Sean is tucked in, Olivia and I return to her room to read books that she enjoys. If we are traveling I always have at least 2 books with us. We read EVERY night! Find a way to incorporate reading that best suits your family.

#10 Make it fun not stressful

*Reading for pleasure is more important for children's cognitive development than their parents' level of education. (2013 research by Dr Alice Sullivan and Matt Brown from the Institute of Education)

Make Reading Everyday a Priority in 2014!